The Effects of High and Low Sentence Contingency on Learning and Attitudes

Abstract

By a logical analysis it was shown that the sentence contingency index is roughly equivalent to Shannon's measure of redundancy. In two independent experiments it was demonstrated that a significantly greater number of multiple-choice questions are answered by those who study text characterized by higher sentence contingency, or redundancy. The findings were compared to those found in investigations of the effects of redundancy on words and syllables. Data from a third experiment provided support for the conclusion that preference for text material also is related to sentence contingency.